Pages

Saturday, 28 March 2015

Review: Throne of Glass (Throne of Glass #1) by Sarah J. Mass

Goodreads Synopsis:

After serving out a year of hard labor
in the salt mines of Endovier for her crimes, 18-year-old assassin Celaena
Sardothien is dragged before the Crown Prince. Prince Dorian offers her her
freedom on one condition: she must act as his champion in a competition to find
a new royal assassin. Her opponents are men-thieves and assassins and warriors
from across the empire, each sponsored by a member of the king's council. If
she beats her opponents in a series of eliminations, she'll serve the kingdom
for three years and then be granted her freedom.

Celaena finds her training sessions with the
captain of the guard, Westfall, challenging and exhilirating. But she's bored
stiff by court life. Things get a little more interesting when the prince
starts to show interest in her... but it's the gruff Captain Westfall who seems
to understand her best.

Then one of the other contestants turns up
dead... quickly followed by another.

Can Celaena figure out who the killer is before
she becomes a victim? As the young assassin investigates, her search leads her
to discover a greater destiny than she could possibly have imagined.

The plot was amazing and so interesting I can’t even explain
it. There was always something to sink your teeth into it, whether it was the
competition or what was going on in the background. The pace was unrelenting
and I simply couldn’t put this book down; there were breathers here and there
but it never entirely stopped. Sarah J Mass even managed to throw in fae
folklore and a complex history that you didn’t get overwhelmed by.

But it was the characters that easily stole the show. Love
triangle aside Chaol and Dorian were great characters and particularly with
Chaol there’s more to him than he lets on. I was on his side from the start,
yet I still fell for Dorian’s charm so I want to see more of both of them which
is something I can’t usually say when it comes to love triangles (I generally
want to kill one or the other, sometimes even both!). I’m dying to see how Dorian's role as prince plays into the story,
perhaps he could even become King? *fingers crossed* but I know how unlikely that is right now…
*sigh*

I hate the King as much as Calaena, even though you
don’t see much of him first-hand.

Calaena on the otherhand was the best kind of female
character. Not just because she could kill someone in 2 moves and was an overall complete badass (though I admit it contributed) but she was strong in so many
ways. I loved how no matter what happened she didn’t change to be what everyone
expected, sticking with her cocky attitude that was so easy to admire. Being
deadly but vulnerable and kind but arrogant is quite the feat but one word
cannot sum up Calaena’s intense character. Unless of course you just went with
awesome.

I can’t believe I waited so long to read this series, and if
you’re still yet to read it then I beg you to pick it up. Now. Please. I tried
my hardest to put into words how much I loved this book, but still I can’t do
it justice (and I’m running out of synonyms for awesome), so go read the book
and see for yourself the epicness that is Sarah J Mass’ Throne of Glass.

Favourite Quotes:

“Libraries were full
of ideas – perhaps the most dangerous and powerful of all weapons.”“We all bear scars... Mine just happen
to be more visible than most.”“Names are not important. It's what lies
inside of you that matters.”“He was done with politics and intrigue.
He loved her, and no empire, no king, and no earthly fear would keep him from
her. No, if they tried to take her from him, he'd rip the world apart with his
bare hands. And for some reason, that didn't terrify him.”“She moaned into her
pillow. “Go away. I feel like dying.”

“No fair maiden should die alone,” he said putting a hand on hers.
“Shall I read to you in your final moments? What story would you like?”

She snatched her hand back. “How about the story of the idiotic prince
who won’t leave the assassin alone?”

“Oh!
I love that story! It has such a happy ending, too – why, the assassin was
really feigning her illness in order to get the prince’s attention! Who would
have guessed it? Such a clever girl. And the bedroom scene is so lovely – it’s
worth reading through all of their ceaseless banter!”

Disclaimer

I can guarantee that all of my reviews are honest, which includes the reviews I have written based on review copies I have received which are clearly specified. The fact that they are review copies has no impact on my thoughts and opinions stated in the review. I do not receive any form of monetary compensation for my reviews from authors/publishers.